CD booklet includes band photo, obscure booklet backcover painting as well as good lyrics mostly about personal thoughts, beliefs and inner battles and they are all good, staying out of the cliche and are even quite poetic at places.
Opposite to what you might expect from a norwegian band, Bethzaida is not black metal, even the overall feeling is slightly blackish not just because of the hoarse vocals but also because of some guitarwork. However, they do also mix with some doom elements as well as death metal into a tasty stew spiced by a mocking happy flute in some of the songs like the title track and "Frozen Wastes" which happens to be my fave Bethzaida tune, been ever since I got "Dawn" demo few years ago. There is still room for improvement in arrangements but the two new tracks "Burn, Fire..." and "Forever Night" show that the writing skills of the band have not vanished since the demo days as they are more mature and complete sounding than the older tracks. The new material seems to be more diverse, mixing nice atmospheric The 3rd And the Mortal kind of melodies with harsh vocals and this gives quite high hopes for their future releases.
Bethzaida is one of the most original norwegian bands I have heard for a long time and I wonder why it took so long for them to get signed as these days almost every norwegian band gets signed if they just even slightly sound blackish. "Nine Worlds" is a refreshing album offerring something new to the saturated norwegian metal scene and the whole world. I just hope that the label has the resources to push the band enough to get all the attention they deserve. -Mega
http://www.redstream.org/Bethzaida-Nine-Worlds_RD8130.php
The Outsider
Bethzaida Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
"Climbing up the tower, I'm on my way to light
Escaping from the castle, I've been locked up day and night
Have to find my way out, or I will go insane
Lust for light is leading me, flowing in my veins
At last I am free... what strange things to see
I'd better keep to the road this dark night
So I will not be led astray in my search for light"
Voice of fate:"Longing for light, you're to find death instead
Out from the dark into darkness you're led"
"Following the road to a castle in the night
People there are screaming, going insane with fright
What could it be there that scares them so
Well... I hope that I'll never know"
Waiting until day-time he sleeps beneath a tree
The wild animals avoid the thing they see
Not even the wolves of the forest dare come near
It wakes in them an arcane fear
Looking for water when he wakes up from his dreams
Thirsty and dirty he goes looking for a stream
Finding a river he sees his mirror image in it
The thing he sees, he knows it is himself
"This is too hard to live with", he cries in desperate tears
Recognizing the unearthly fear
Drowning himself is the only escape
There is no way to escape your fate
The Bethzaida song "The Outsider," inspired by the short story of H.P. Lovecraft, is a tale of a man who has been imprisoned in a castle and is yearning to escape into the light. Climbing up the tower, he makes his way to escape and finally sees the daylight. In awe, he finds himself standing amidst marble slabs and columns, but he has to keep moving on the road to avoid being led astray on his search for light. The voice of fate says to him that longing for light will lead to death, but he persists nonetheless.
As he follows the road, he finds people screaming in a castle at night; they are going insane with fright. Wondering what could be there that terrifies them so much, he decides to wait until day-time to figure it out. Sleeping beneath a tree, the wild animals avoid him, but the sight of his image in a flowing river causes him to realize that he cannot live with his fate. The final verse of the song gives us the inference that he takes his life by drowning himself in the stream.
Line by Line Meaning
Climbing up the tower, I'm on my way to light
I seek to escape from this life of darkness and sorrow.
Escaping from the castle, I've been locked up day and night
I have been imprisoned and yearn for a life beyond these walls.
Have to find my way out, or I will go insane
I must find a way to escape or the madness will consume me.
Lust for light is leading me, flowing in my veins
I am driven by a passion for light that courses through my very being.
At last I am free... what strange things to see
I am finally free from my confinement, but what I see is unfamiliar and unsettling.
Marble slabs and columns staring at me
The architecture around me is imposing and makes me feel insignificant.
I'd better keep to the road this dark night
I must stay on a path to ensure my safety in the darkness that surrounds me.
So I will not be led astray in my search for light
I cannot afford to be distracted from my quest to find illumination.
Longing for light, you're to find death instead
You will not find light, but instead will discover darkness and ultimate demise.
Out from the dark into darkness you're led
Your attempt to escape will be futile, for you will only find more darkness.
Following the road to a castle in the night
I continue my journey towards a new destination, guided only by the darkness.
People there are screaming, going insane with fright
I encounter others who are similarly lost and terrified of their surroundings.
What could it be there that scares them so
I cannot begin to comprehend the horrors that have brought these people to such a state of terror.
Well... I hope that I'll never know
I am afraid of what I may discover and devoutly hope to avoid such horrors.
Waiting until day-time he sleeps beneath a tree
I am forced to wait until the daylight emerges, passing the time in a place that offers minimal comfort.
The wild animals avoid the thing they see
Even nature is frightened of the unsettling presence that crosses its path.
Not even the wolves of the forest dare come near
The wolves, known for their ferocity, are too frightened by the presence to even approach it.
It wakes in them an arcane fear
The mere presence of this entity is enough to send the wolves into a state of supernatural terror.
Looking for water when he wakes up from his dreams
Upon awakening, I seek a basic necessity in the form of water to sustain me.
Thirsty and dirty he goes looking for a stream
My thirst drives me and I search fiercely for a source of water.
Finding a river he sees his mirror image in it
I see my reflection in the water and am confronted by my own mortality.
The thing he sees, he knows it is himself
I realize that the image before me is indeed my own, and am struck by a profound sense of dread.
This is too hard to live with
The realization of my own mortality proves to be too much to bear.
he cries in desperate tears
Emotions consume me and I weep uncontrollably.
Recognizing the unearthly fear
I finally comprehend the supernatural terror that has consumed my very being.
Drowning himself is the only escape
The only release from this terror is to succumb to it fully and cease to be.
There is no way to escape your fate
Ultimately, one's fate is inescapable and death is the only certainty in this world.
Contributed by Adalyn B. Suggest a correction in the comments below.